From his experience rapidly scaling a tech startup, Zak Westphal, an entrepreneur from Austin, Texas, has valuable insights on navigating the digital revolution reshaping every industry. He’s witnessed firsthand how AI, automation, and big data transform operations, communication, and competition.
“Today’s leaders need a whole new toolbox to thrive in this environment,” he explains. “It’s no longer enough just to layer some tech onto old working methods. Companies must embed digital capabilities into their DNA – from creativity to operations to talent development.”
As Zak has learned, those unable or unwilling to adapt risk extinction. However, monumental opportunities await leaders who can cultivate the key skills this era demands.
In this conversation, Zak Westphal shares what he’s learned from his entrepreneurial journey – his perspectives on fostering a culture of innovation, leading remote teams, and developing talent ready for constant change. He’ll discuss the major shifts he sees happening across industries and what business leaders everywhere can do to prepare for this new digital landscape.
Adapting to Constant Change
The pace of change has accelerated dramatically – new technologies continuously emerge, markets rapidly shift, and customer expectations consistently evolve. Leaders can no longer rely on static strategies or outdated business models in this landscape. Adaptability goes from nice-to-have to necessity.
“The digital age waits for no one,” Westphal emphasizes. “Leaders who resist change or cling to outdated ways of operating are setting their organizations up to fail. Remaining open to constant learning and adaptation is key.”
This means closely monitoring emerging trends both within and outside your industry. It requires welcoming new ideas, experimenting, and pivoting your business strategy when needed. Ongoing learning is now core to leadership. The digital age demands leaders adopt a perpetual student mindset – continuously expanding their knowledge across technologies and skills. Organizations must embed adaptability into their culture and operations to thrive.
Building Tech-Savviness
Leaders today don’t necessarily need coding or data science skills. However, they do need a strong understanding of how technology impacts their organizations. This goes beyond simply using common tools – it’s about recognizing the strategic implications of emerging technologies.
As Zak Westphal explains, “Technology awareness is no longer just for the IT department. Every leader needs to think deeply about how innovations like AI, blockchain, or even the many fintech tools could reshape their competitive landscape overnight. Things change extremely rapidly now. Taking even a short break from learning can leave you way behind the curve.”
This means developing working knowledge around concepts like cloud computing, big data, AI, and cybersecurity. Leaders must also cultivate data literacy – the ability to interpret trends from data and apply data-driven insights to guide business decisions.
At the same time, Westphal advises that “Leaders should have constructive collaborations with technical teams. If you can’t code, you need to be able to discuss the art of the possible and make decisions about platform investments that align to strategic objectives.”
Cultivating a Culture of Innovation
Innovation is the lifeblood of any organization competing in the fast-paced digital landscape. But it does not simply happen – leaders must actively nurture a culture that sparks creative thinking.
As Zak Westphal explains, “Innovation isn’t reserved for just a few ‘idea people.’ True innovation stems from entire companies feeling empowered to challenge the status quo and try new things. Of course, this means welcoming some failures along the way.”
Effective leaders provide tools and platforms for experimentation while celebrating smart risks, even those that fail. They foster collaboration across teams and departments to integrate different perspectives. Most importantly, visionary leaders stay open to new ideas that counter traditional ways of operating.
Excelling in Digital Communication
With remote work becoming the norm, strong communication skills are more essential than ever for leaders nowadays. Let’s be honest – managing teams across time zones or offices requires fluency in digital tools to connect effectively.
Zak Westphal explains from his experience, “There’s nothing more frustrating than feeling out of sync with your team just because you’re not in the same room. Modern leaders need to embrace technologies like video conferencing, chat apps, project dashboards, and more to keep operations running and keep spirits and momentum up.”
This means setting expectations around online availability and response times. It’s about over-communicating to avoid misalignments. Most importantly, it’s about nurturing team relationships and camaraderie virtually. Grab coffee over Zoom, celebrate milestones with emoji reactions, and keep things lighthearted with memes when fitting.
In a dispersed workforce, communication flows digitally. That’s a fact. But genuine bonds still anchor great teams – it just looks different.
Data-Driven Decision-Making
“I’ll admit, I was somewhat of a guts-based decision maker early on,” says Zak Westphal. “But scaling a fast-growing company quickly taught me the power of letting data guide difficult choices.”
While intuition and experience still matter, data must complement them in this era. Modern leaders must extract insights from the information explosion and translate it into action.
“We have access to more data than ever before,” Westphal continues. “The leaders who will thrive are the ones who invest in understanding it.”
This means fully utilizing analytics tools, creating dashboards to monitor key performance indicators, and building organizational data fluency. Numbers and trends reflect the actual customer experience. Innovative leaders empower teams at all levels to leverage data to drive better ideas versus relying on assumptions or hunches alone.
“Data helps cut through the noise,” Westphal says. “You still need vision and guts, too, in leadership. However, finding ways to blend qualitative and quantitative insights is key to staying ahead.
Final Word
“Make no mistake – the digital revolution brings huge opportunities, but only for those willing to evolve.”
Understanding emerging technologies, embracing agile operations, unlocking creativity, connecting remote teams – these may have once been nice-to-haves. Today, cultivating these core skills separates the organizations poised to ride this wave of change from those about to be engulfed.
“Leaders have to be open-minded, adaptable learners,” Westphal continues. “Complacency kills in times of disruption. Questioning the status quo, listening to contrary opinions, collaborating across teams – that’s how you spark innovation.”